Indeed, the current Deputy Jรฉrรดme Riviรจre, also from the UMP, did not view this nomination favorably and went as far as going to court to assert his rights. However, it will ultimately be as decided by the local UMP authorities, and the sole UMP candidate for the constituency will be Eric Ciotti.
Nice Premiรจre: Eric Ciotti, you have just obtained the UMP nomination in the 1st constituency of Nice. What was your reaction to this appointment?
Eric Ciotti: A feeling of pride and responsibility for the mission that now falls to me, and I am aware of its difficulty. I must prove worthy of the choice made by the national and regional authorities but also, and especially, of the activists in the constituency who have massively given me their support.
NP: In your opinion, why were you chosen?
EC: I was chosen to embody a certain desire for renewal. The authorities of our movement based their decision on an objective analysis. Our ideas and values have been in decline in this constituency since 2002. It was necessary to stop a spiral of failure and decline. This constituency is threatened by the left. My candidacy was a response to that.
NP: This will be your first encounter with voters. How do you feel in these new roles?
EC: I have already been elected as a municipal councilor of St Martin Vรฉsubie in 1989, a candidate in the regional election on the RPR/UDF list in 1992, and I was a candidate on the municipal list in 1995. This is not my first electoral encounter, but it will be the first legislative one. I approach this moment with enthusiasm, serenity, and rigor. I am aware of the task I am facing, and I want to fully assume this responsibility.
NP: Jรฉrรดme Riviรจre says he feels “attacked by an apparatchik never elected” and has appealed to Nicolas Sarkozy and the courts. What is your opinion on these statements?
I will no longer react to Jรฉrรดme Riviรจre’s comments. There was a debate settled by the national authorities, the activists, and the courts. I regret this because I believe the justice system has more important things to do than dealing with electoral matters. The result is clear and indisputable. I call for unity and gathering, and I strongly desire the controversies to stop. My only opponent is on the left and is named Patrick Allemand.
In a political family, there are selection procedures that must be followed.
NP: How do you think the Nice Deputy has moved away from the UMP (source AFP)?
EC: I believe that when a sitting Deputy receives only 55 votes in an internal poll among the activists of his constituency, where he has been elected for 5 years, it is the best proof that he has distanced himself from this political family. He has moved away from a political family where all ideas are acceptable, and it is dishonest to say that the debate was settled.
NP: Patrick Allemand, Jรฉrรดme Riviรจre, Eric Ciotti… The stage will be high-level on the East Nice side. How do you position yourself against candidates already known to voters?
EC: I want to bring a touch of renewal. I belong to the team of Christian Estrosi and Nicolas Sarkozy. Two men who want to make things happen, they are men of action and change. We want to give another image of politics. We will say what we will do and do what we have said.
Moreover, I am from Nice and deeply rooted in this constituency. Indeed, my family used to run a hardware store on the boulevard Jean Jaurรฉs. I want the residents of these neighborhoods to feel at home and regain a quality of life they deserve.
NP: What do you think of the identity candidates in the legislative elections?
EC: Everything that is excessive is negligible. Excess and caricature have little interest in our democracy. I have nothing to do with the ideas conveyed by the identitaires. They are ideas of hatred and exclusion.
NP: What would be the first words you would like to say to the citizens of the first Nice constituency?
Words of deep attachment to this constituency. I wish to serve them with my experience and my roots. I am used to handling the big issues of Nice due to my functions at the General Council. I also want to establish a lasting relationship with the associative fabric, which is rich and dense in this constituency.
NP: What would be the first project you would implement if you were elected?
EC: Legislative projects, of course. I wish to propose the political project of the UMP and Nicolas Sarkozy. I want to implement a real project of renewal and contribute to establishing better living conditions.
A major project dear to my heart is the Port of Nice. We have a gem that deserves a fantastic project to revive this neighborhood.
NP: How do you position yourself regarding the next municipal elections: 2007 or 2008, and why?
EC: I would be more in favor of a municipal election in 2007, but this will only be decided after the presidential election.
NP: What candidates do you imagine today in the next Nice municipal elections?
EC: (Laughs) I can already imagine a candidate for the presidential elections, then those for the legislative elections, but it is a bit early and unrealistic to define the candidates for the Nice municipal elections.
NP: The UDF will present a candidate in all French constituencies. What is your opinion on this point?
EC: It is customary, a few months before the deadline, to announce candidacies everywhere. At the UMP, we aim for gathering and unity. We are not in a position of attack or response towards the UDF.
Once again, I hope that we can have united candidacies.
NP: Finally, what will Eric Ciotti’s program be in the coming weeks?
EC: A program of actions, debates, and meetings with the citizens of the constituency. There are 55,000 voters, and my ideal program would be to meet all of them.
